Rep. Aaron Schock sponsors charitable giving bill

Thursday

Jul 17, 2014 at 9:36 PM

Chris Kaergard of the Journal Star

PEORIA — Senior citizens hoping to make some large charitable donations with fewer tax implications may be in luck, thanks to a bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock that passed the House on Thursday.

The measure would make permanent a tax code provision that lets people older than 70½ take money up to $100,000 out of their IRA savings to donate to not-for-profits without treating it as taxable income.

It passed by a bipartisan vote of 277-130 and now moves on to the Senate for consideration.

“This is a provision that makes sense for both sides of the aisle ...” Schock said by phone, touting the benefit for charities that help people in situations both ordinary and extraordinary. “This is an important tool for charities to raise funds.”

The measure has been aggressively backed by not-for-profits both locally and across the country.

“This is a win,” said Mark Roberts, the CEO of the Community Foundation of Central Illinois. “This is good.”

He said his own agency and others around the region routinely field calls from donors wondering if the exemption — previously temporary, having been expired and renewed four times since 2006 — was going to continue.

Keeping it, Roberts said, creates a measure of consistency for those donors.

“Without the certainty, it makes it difficult for non-profits to fundraise effectively,” Schock said.

And that’s important to let them carry out their missions, particularly in extraordinary circumstances.

“They step in and fill the void after disasters,” the Peoria Republican said, noting that after the Nov. 17 tornado in Tazewell and Woodford counties, “it wasn’t (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) there within hours. It was the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, a local food pantry, the churches down the street.”

On that score, it helps ensure donations to keep a pattern of national giving strong, Schock said.

“It’s also a part of our country’s fabric, in that we’ve always historically been not only a country that believes in giving for our friends and neighbors, but also mankind around the world,” he said. “… While this tax provision helps Americans donate, the positive effect is felt around the world.”

Total charitable giving in the country last year totalled $316 billion, according to statistics from Schock’s office, and individual gifts amounted to some 72 percent of that total.

Chris Kaergard can be reached at ckaergard@pjstar.com or 686-3135. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisKaergard.